The Starbright Foundation is a
non-profit organization dedicated to helping children with serious
illnesses cope with
their medical and psychosocial challenges. One of the Foundation's
projects is the creation of the "Videos with
Attitude" series. These videos are particularly targeted to teenagers with
chronic medical conditions who face the unique
challenges of maintaining independence and transitioning from childhood
to adulthood while simultaneously coping
with serious illnesses. The videos feature teens talking openly with each
other about their feelings, questions, and
concerns.

"Plastic Eggs or Something? Cracking Hospital Life" addresses teenagers'
feelings about the frustrations of a hospital
stay. The adolescent patients lament about the hospital gowns, the food,
the noisy environment, roommates, and blood
draws. They discuss their concerns about a lack of privacy and being
awoken in the middle of the night for procedures.
The teens also give each other advice about optimizing their visit. One
patient offers a new role for IV poles: a method
of transportation. Another suggests bringing in items from home to make
the hospital room a more familiar,
comfortable place.

"Plastic Eggs or Something?" helps teenage patients realize that others
share their feelings about the problems of
extended hospital stays. It is a useful tool to encourage adolescent
patients to explore and discuss these concerns. The
video does not explain to the teenage patient the medical reasons for
procedures or interruptions. However, it does
provide a forum for teenagers to express their frustrations with a lack of
control over certain aspects of prolonged
hospitalizations. This video is highly recommended by OncoLink.